Ukip will try to unseat Scotland's only Conservative MP at the next General Election in an attempt to make the country a "Tory-free zone".

The party's sole Scottish MEP, David Coburn, said Conservative David Mundell's Borders seat is his top target and that he might stand in the constituency himself.

Ukip last week gained its first MP. Douglas Carlaw, who triggered a by-election in Clacton after defecting from the Tories to Ukip, won with a 12,404 majority.

The party, led by Nigel Farage, also came within a few hundred votes of winning the Heywood and Middleton by-election against Labour.

Ukip's progress is slower in Scotland, although the party secured its first win north of the Border when Coburn became an MEP in May.

A key plank of Ukip's general election strategy in Scotland next year is to topple Mundell.

Coburn and Farage are eyeing the junior Scotland Office minister's Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale seat, which he won in 2010 with a 4,194 majority.

Coburn said: "We will remove Mundell and make Scotland a Tory-free zone. We will pour resources and bodies into the seat.

"We can reach parts of the constituency that other parties cannot."

He also believes the Tories are finished north of the Border. He said: "The Conservative Party is unelectable in Scotland. There was a twitch in the corpse during the referendum, but the body is still showing little sign of life."

Despite only being elected to the European Parliament in May, Coburn revealed he might be the Ukip candidate going head-to-head with Mundell. He said: "It has crossed my mind. I am considering it."

Tory strategists believe the party can increase its MP tally next year from one to three.

A spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives said: "A vote for Nigel Farage next year will do only one thing and that's put Ed Miliband in Downing Street.

"We will be fighting this election campaign with confidence, focussing on delivering our long-term economic plan for Scotland and the UK."

lMeanwhile, Ukip has accused the Westminster parties of running a smear campaign against them, and ruled out entering into any form of election pact with the Conservatives.

